The dirtiest 6 letter word in America

Submit! There, I said it. The most hated word in our post modern culture. Each day that passes seems to shun authority more. But don't be fooled by all the "liberated" men and women out there. We are all submitting to something in some way. Today the standard seems to be "parents, submit to your children. Give them everything they want and never correct them." "Kids, submit to NO ONE!" If your teacher does something you don't like your mommy or daddy will rush in and save you.Wives, submit to your lust for gossip, shopping control of the home. "God never really meant for us to respect our husbands right? If he did he would have made men better, more like us." And of course, men,submit to your fleshly desires. Look all you want, feel what you want. You don't need to submit to God. You are big and strong and you don't need some sissy faith that turns you into a woman.
People look at submission like a prison. "I am never going to give up my rights, my will." But the truth is submission is the most freeing place you can be.
Every so often as we age we might have a flashback of a tender childhood moment. Maybe a thunderstorm caused night unrest and you submitted  yourself to the loving arms of a mom and felt safe and secure. Or when you were sick and you knew there was nothing you could do to make yourself feel better so you submit yourself to the care of a mother, trusting her completely, knowing she has your best interest at heart. I remember being a little girl of maybe 6 or 7 and just sitting on my daddy's lap with my ear to his chest. I would just listen to the deep, muffled rumble of his voice as he talked to my mom. I would feel so at rest that soon my eye lids would become heavy.
Maybe you never had a family life where you got to feel this. Maybe you came from a broken home where you could not trust the actions of a mother or father but you could see other kids hugged by their parents. Maybe you grew up longing to submit, to trust your life to someone that would love you but you never had that.Maybe you have lived most of your adult life chasing that base need only to feel empty.
Now is your chance. True peace. Real rest. To feel like a child, wrapped in a warm blanket and held in strong arms. God wants so badly to give you that. To fill that need but just as a child has to submit to a parent, we have to submit our will to him. We have all seen that toddler refuses to take his nap. he fights and cries and pushes his mom away and she desperately tries to subdue the child for his own good. She might have a fun day planned but she know that without his submission to a nap, without him giving up his will, he will never get the rest he needs so that he can  enjoy the day ahead. We are the same as that child. We have free will. We fight submission to Christ when all he wants to do is give us rest, equip us, make our lives count and have meaning.
God gave us authority. Kings, presidents, parents, bosses, husbands, the list goes on. But we live in a culture that says "you can be a Christian and not listen to any authority. "I can do what I want as long as i say I know Jesus. He does not want me to be a door mat". Well, actually, he kind of does. Jesus himself tells us to submit ourselves to the laws that we may live in peace and be an example to the lost. (1 Peter 2:13, Heb. 13:17,Rom.13:1 just to name a few)
Submission is not just for first time believers It is for all of us that take on the name of Christ. Submission is unnatural. At the core, man wants his way. We are selfish and sin and temptation pull at us and tell us to "fight for your rights!!" But Jesus wants us to fight for the rights of others. To lay down our lives, to pick up our cross that we might win some. I know I cannot do any of that on my own but when I submit my will to Christ and ask him to give me the power look out! Cool things happen and best of all I get to feel the truest freedom this world will ever know.
I was reminded this week of one of my favorite quotes. "You can't stress over what you don't own." That is what submission does.It takes all our stress and worry because we no longer "own" our lives, we submit them to Christ and ask him to work out all things for our good and to his glory.
It is ok to lose a fight with your spouse. It is ok to go the extra mile for that evil co worker or boss. It is more than ok to teach our kids submission to authority. It is better than ok, it is our call. Wives, we don't lose out if we give our husbands authority in the home. We win because when they feel respected they want to love us which is what we are really seeking anyway. Above all when we submit ourselves to Christ we lose our strife and we gain his peace and joy! I call that a win.  

Understanding the big "WHY?"

The Lord gave me a nice window of sun to get a quick run in this morning. I could see the clouds and gray sky before me when I set out. I prayed as I hit play on my Pandora worship station that the Lord would pick the songs I needed to hear. He loves us so much that he even gets involved in the minutia of our day. He did not waste any time bringing me into total worship a tenth of a mile into my run. Once I left our sub and got out onto the open road I was hit head on by a strong wind. Maybe gusts up to 20 mph coming right at me. I love to run not because it gives me some amazing endorphins or anything. I run because I like to eat.  So when I face things like rain or strong wind I can find a lot of good reasons to head back home but not today. Today I needed to run for some alone time with the Lord. Today I needed some time to let him speak to me in the solitude of my own mind and he did. As I was closing in on mile one I felt my body want to stop. The wind was taking its toll. Then an amazing song came on and I got lost in worship again. I will run with my hands raised, arms out, eyes closed,( I try to remember to open them every few seconds. I have not been hit by a car...yet.) I must look like a crazy person but it feels so freeing. As I pushed myself on to mile two I felt the Lord lay on my heart, "My love for you is like the wind. Sometimes it will push against you to make you stronger and other times it will come behind you to carry you." You see, most runners know if you want to get stronger muscles you need to train with resistance. Ether wind or water or running in sand. All of those things put stress on you body and while they cause pain and fatigue when you are doing it they will build strength for your next run. Some times God shakes us up. Takes us out of our "happy, comfy spot" to make us stronger. It is ok to ask Him, "why are you doing this? Show me your will." In fact, that is what he wants us to do in the hard times. As king David said. "Search me, God, and know my heart: test me and know my anxious thoughts." Psalm 139:23
It can be hard but the storm never lasts forever. It will always come to an end at some point. Weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes with the morning. Psalm 30:5. We all know that sometimes pain last longer than just one night but we can always hope and wait for the wind to change. My first two miles were hard but when I turned around to head home the last two were amazing. I had the wind at my back, my legs were warm and Jesus was in my heart. God knows how long to keep the "wind in our face". He knows when we desperately need "the wind at our back". He is sovereign, merciful, beautiful and wonderful to those that call on him.  Sometimes, in our "humanieness" we don't understand what he is doing but if we seek to praise him, trust him and learn from our trials than he will meet us in a beautiful display of hope and compassion. He is so good. He is so faithful. No matter what He asks us to walk through we can trust, hope and know it will be for His glory and for our good. Praise Him in the storm. Praise Him in the calm. Praise Him...